Ad Matching: Know the Policies

Advertisement matching with competitors is one way retailers keep you, the customer, in their store and not somewhere else. With the popularity of this kind of savings, more retailers are jumping on the bandwagon and broadening their ad-match policies to better accommodate their customers. While this is a win-win situation for consumers, it’s important to remember that ad-match policies vary widely from one retailer to the next, and this will affect your savings potential. Here are a few nuances from a few of the major retailers you probably shop with on a regular basis.

Ad match to another competitor’s price. This is the most basic form of ad matching, and is fairly universal from one retailer to the next. The main difference lies in whether or not the competitor requires you to present proof of the advertisement in a flyer or on your smart phone. Wal-Mart, for instance, no longer requires you to present ads at the register. You can even use a new feature they call Savings Catcher to scan your receipts and let them do the ad matching for you. Other retailers such as J.C. Penney are still old school and want you to bring in the paper flyer or email showing the advertisement price. Because this varies from one retailer to the next, it’s always a good idea to have some proof of the sale price with you when you purchase the item or request a reimbursement.

Retroactive price drops. Sometimes you notice something goes on sale after you’ve already purchased it, or is featured at a discounted price at another store. The good news is that you can still take advantage of the savings. Some retailers retro-actively honor competitor (or changes in their own) pricing for a period after your purchase, such as two weeks to a month. Keep your receipts and some proof of the price difference if you notice an item cheaper somewhere else after you’ve already purchased it.

Ad match an online price. This is where it gets tricky. Few retailers used to offer ad matching to online prices, but with the increasing presence of major retailers online, and the trend of shoppers towards online purchases, this category is opening up. For instance, Best Buy offers ad matching for specific online competitors, including themselves; Wal-Mart honors its .com pricing as well as major online-only retailer Amazon.

What you can’t price match. In spite of the increasing range of ad matching, some situations still aren’t accepted at most retailers, such as buy-one-get one offers without a retail value, clearance or closeout pricing, or specific offers such as gift cards or other incentives. While these are understandable, it never hurts to ask, since policies changes continually.

Additional perks. Some competitors really go the extra mile with ad matching, such as Home Depot’s promise to match and beat their competitors’ prices by 10%. This has some restrictions, such as in-store shopping only, but is still a great way to save.

The key to successful ad matching is to know the policies (if you don’t, simply look them up online) since many employees aren’t thoroughly versed on them. In any case, it never hurts to ask for the lower price, because they might just give it to you anyway.